Thriving and Dying in a Hotter Southwest

Birds and reptiles feel the burn

The Sonoran desert tortoise just made the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's endangered species list.
Aaron Shurts/Flickr

U.S. Geological Survey scientists found that the climate change predicted for the American Southwest during the next 60 to 90 years might drastically alter the breeding range of native bird and reptile populations.

Northern Arizona University scientists modeled the projected change here—with an almost 20 percent drop in precipitation said to hit the species from now until 2099.

Among those thriving as the Southwest starts cooking is the Sonoran desert tortoise. Reclassified to differentiate the ancient desert species from his Mojave Desert cousin, the tortoise should remain where it is if "the dogs" stay away. Human networks and invasive dog species—not climate change—threaten the tortoise, now classified by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature as vulnerable to extinction.

Black-throated sparrow. Photo: Getty Images/iStockphoto/MikeLan

Thriving: Black-throated sparrows live where creosote bushes grow. They should see a breeding range increase of 34 to 47 percent. The gray vireo (another dry-heat bird) should see a 58 to 71 percent spike.